Chicken-Fried Steak

Chicken fried steak is another favorite here at Kathey Jo’s Kitchen. It’s a southern dish that could not be tastier. My husband Rob and I love making this dish any time in the year, including the holidays. Sometimes it even gets requested for Thanksgiving by our family members, which is already saying a lot about the dish!

If you’ve never had this dish, you’ll be surprised to know that the recipe involves no actual chicken meat. Instead, it calls for boneless round steak. They are dipped into the egg mixture, coated with the cracker crumbs, and fried. It’s made very similar to fried chicken, but of course, it’s actually steak not chicken. For best results, remember to cut the meat into ½ inch thickness and pound each piece to tenderize.

This three-ingredient gravy really elevates the taste of the steak. To accomplish this milk gravy, all you need is ¼ cup of all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon of salt, and two cups of milk. This will be done after the round steak because you’ll want to reserve the drippings for the gravy, which ultimately adds that caramelized taste we all love. The best tip I could offer you for the gravy is to consistently stir. Serve this beauty with the chicken-fried steak and enjoy!

INGREDIENTS

• 2 pounds beef boneless round steak — about 1/2 inch thick
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 egg
• 1 cup soda cracker crumbs (about 28 squares) or breadcrumbs
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• Milk Gravy (see below)

MILK GRAVY

• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups milk

DIRECTIONS

1. Cut beef steak into 6 serving pieces.
2. Pound each piece until 1/4 inch thick to tenderize.
3. Beat water and egg; reserve.
4. Mix cracker crumbs and pepper.
5. Dip beef into egg mixture, then coat with cracker crumbs.
6. Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until hot.
7. Cook beef in oil, turning once, until brown, 6 to 7 minutes.
8. Remove beef from skillet; keep warm.
9. Reserve drippings for Milk Gravy.
10. Prepare gravy; serve with Chicken-Fried Steak.

MILK GRAVY:

11. Measure reserved drippings (from step 4); add enough vegetable oil to drippings, if necessary, to measure 1/4 cup.
12. Return dripping to skillet.
13. Stir in flour and salt.
14. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly to loosen brown particles from skillet, until smooth and bubbly; remove from heat.
15. Slowly pour milk into skillet, stirring constantly.
16. Heat to boiling over low heat, stirring constantly.
17. Boil and stir 1 minute.